Caffe Macaroni Sciue Sciue

Stop # 3 brought me to Caffe Macaroni Sciue Sciue (Macaroni). For the first time on my journey I had a companion. My lovely friend Bethany (B) was able to join me. Yay! As soon as we stepped inside the energy in this place was beyond contagious. We were greeted by a very friendly gentleman, who we found out later was the owner, Mario. We sat at a candlelit high top table. There are two very small TVs on the wall, just large enough to catch the score of a game, which for a sports fan like myself was perfect. This was the best place for B & I to have our much needed catch up sesh. The wait staff were funny, helpful, and kind, checked on us often, but gave us our space to have an uninterrupted conversation. We occupied the table for hours (girls like to talk!) and we never once felt like they were trying to turn the table over, and for a Friday night in SF this is noteworthy.

Being that it was a Friday night, B & I decided to partake in adult beverages. She had the Pink Emotion, which is Prosecco flavored with guava juice and I had the Sweet Dream, Prosecco flavored with mango juice. They have little pieces of fresh strawberries and apples in them. Extremely refreshing. B said the guava taste hit her at the end and sat on the roof of her mouth in a good way!

My favorite taste of the night by far was the olive oil that accompanied the bread. It had chopped garlic, parsley, and sun-dried tomato. AMAZING. This should be available for purchase.  For starters we had the Insalata Caprese: fresh mozzarella, tomato, and basil & the Calamari Marinati: grilled calamari salad. The salads like the drinks were refreshing. Next B had the Carpaccio: thinly sliced raw beef, capers, and pecorino. B said, "Rally good. The saltiness of the capers, creaminess of the pecorino, and freshness of the meat is the perfect balance." Macaroni is known for their spaghetti & meatballs, but being the gnocchi connoisseur that I am that was my meal of choice. It was in a tomato sauce with mozzarella and not the typical al dente texture you usually get with gnocchi. It was good, but next time I think I will go for their signature dish or one of the specials   that were recommended.

To complete the evening B & I ordered the Chocolate Truffle Gelato. WOW. It came in a glass on a powdered sugar covered plate. The gelato was coated in a hard shell fudge with nuts. It was scrumptious.


Along with the check came two yummy limoncello shots. Score! After that an introduction to Mario, who was kind enough to give us a tour of The Purple Onion. This is the nightclub that is located downstairs and hosts comedy shows throughout the week and serves food from the Macaroni menu. I look forward to catching a show there in the near future. (http://www.caffemacaroni.com/purple.shtml)

I will return to Caffe Macaroni simply for the experience- great bluesy music, friendly people, and just a warm atmosphere all around. Oh and of course for that amazing olive oil!

http://www.caffemacaroni.com/sciue.shtml
3 out of 5 Ciabatta loaves

Macellato

I walked into stop number 2, Macellato,  to find a very happy young guy behind the counter. Immediately he greeted me with a high five and a "what's up cousin?" I was surprised but returned the fiver and muttered something about not much being up.
Here's how the rest of the conversation unfolded:
High-fiver (HF): "What can I get you?"
Me: "I will take the pulled pork sammy."
HF: "Great, it's on me."
Me: "Ummm..." I was thinking, wow! My blog is really starting to get noticed.
HF: "The owner told me you were coming in."
Me: "I don't know the owner."
HF: "You aren't his cousin?"
Me: "Nope. Oh so, that's why you called me cousin?!"
HF: Laughing, "So you just thought I called a random customer cousin?"
Me: Laughing, "Yep. I thought it was a little odd, but very friendly."
HF: "Well the owner said to look out for his pretty blonde cousin that would be coming in, so..."
Me: Smiling and noting the blog brownie points in my head for the compliment, I replied, "Now that we got that all straightened out, what do I owe you for the sammy?"
HF: Slightly flustered, he said, "Eight bucks."

I grabbed a table outside, another beautiful day in SF. Macellato is extremely small, more of a take out place, but they do have a couple of tables inside and outside. The menu is very limited  but all good options. They have ribs & a few "wiches" on their regular menu (see above left) and a couple of daily specials (see above right).

I went with one of the specials the "pulled porkwich" and it was delish. On a soft roll with BBQ sauce and and a very unique slaw. It was very tender and flavorful. I enjoyed every bite and look forward to checking out a second "wich" some time soon. The prices do include tax, but $8 for a sammy is a little high especially since it doesn't come with anything on the side, but fairly average for SF.  They do have sides available for a couple bux more. They also serve wine which is always a plus. So, that's what's up cousin!

www.macellato.com


4 out of 5 Ciabatta loaves